Why your legs feel warm after eating pasta
Carbohydrate ingestion, with transient endogenous insulinaemia, produces both sympathetic activation and vasodilatation in normal humans.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Sympathetic nerve activity increased by 57% while blood vessels dilated by 39%—opposing forces happening simultaneously.
Traditional physiology teaches that sympathetic activation constricts vessels; here, vasodilation dominates despite stronger nerve signals to constrict.
Practical Takeaways
If you feel sluggish after carbs, know it’s your body actively managing blood sugar—not laziness. Pairing carbs with protein/fiber may smooth this response.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Sympathetic nerve activity increased by 57% while blood vessels dilated by 39%—opposing forces happening simultaneously.
Traditional physiology teaches that sympathetic activation constricts vessels; here, vasodilation dominates despite stronger nerve signals to constrict.
Practical Takeaways
If you feel sluggish after carbs, know it’s your body actively managing blood sugar—not laziness. Pairing carbs with protein/fiber may smooth this response.
Publication
Journal
Clinical science
Year
2002
Authors
E. Scott, J. Greenwood, G. Vacca, J. Stoker, S. Gilbey, D. Mary
Related Content
Claims (6)
When insulin goes up after eating carbs, it lines up with bigger blood flow to muscles, looser blood vessels, and more nerve signals telling vessels to tighten—suggesting insulin might be linked to all these changes happening together.
When healthy people eat a carb-rich meal, their muscles get more blood flow and their blood vessels relax, even though their body also sends signals to tighten blood vessels—this might help their body absorb sugar from the meal better.
Eating carbs makes your body naturally release insulin for a short time—this is different from when doctors give insulin through an IV for a long time.
After eating carbs, scientists measured changes in blood flow and nerve signals in the lower leg using special tools, and saw all the changes happen within two hours.
After eating carbs, the body turns up the 'stress signal' to blood vessels, but the vessels still open up instead of tightening—meaning the body’s normal 'squeeze' signal isn’t strong enough to block the opening.